Barriss' survival
by C. de la Fere
Summary: How Barriss Offee survived the battle of Geonosis...


**Disclaimer: **All characters and concepts belong to George Lucas, none are mine...

wow, almost wrong JK Rowling there....have written too many Harry Potters as compared to Star Wars, lol

**Author's Note:** Huzzah!, my first Star Wars fic is up and it is NOT my original concept for my first SW fic. This was completely random after I found a book with Barriss that takes place two years after Geonosis and I could have sworn that she was killed there. So, this is my own version of her survival, as she is never seen boarding any of the rescue transports and she is not seen in the circle of survivors. Enjoy.

_**btw, is not finished, will finish shortly, sorry!**_

* * *

A bright, blurry light was the first thing she saw upon waking. No distinct figures, no clear objects, just a big light blur with no feeling, no emotion, no chaos, just existing - the epitome of the jedi code. 

Then the pain set in.

Crashing through her head and her body, skull ready to burst open, Barriss closed her eyes again against the light that was threatening to tear her eyes from their sockets. Her bloodied hands instinctively tried to reach up to her face to cover them, but her arms protested so much that the most she could do was lay still and try to endure it all. Breathing came hard; the air was so thick with smoke and dust.

But through the riot of light and the anger of the air, there was no noise. No sound at all, all was incredibly silent. Barriss gave a cough in an attempt to clear her lungs, but also to test her ears - no she was not deaf, but the cough left her chest heaving in pain. Sand had crawled into her wounds and covered her entire body with a course layer of grit. She could taste it mixed with blood dripping down her throat, making her cough painfully even more.

_I've got to get up. I've got to sit up, I'll suffocate myself otherwise. _

Slowly, with no thought but that of survival, Barriss gripped a handful of sand in each fist and tried desperately to raise herself from the ground. It was an excruciatingly slow and painful process, one that ended only with her being able to flip onto her stomach. Through coughs and gasps, she let herself sink down for a little rest before trying to force herself to her knees.

Opening her eyes again in search now of something to aid her, she saw a wall not far from where she lay. This would do. It took an enormous effort, but she crawled toward it, every second a little closer to her destination. At the wall's side, she drew herself into a sitting position and rested again, breathing heavily but more easily as her lungs and throat seemed to be in a better position in which to allow air into her body.

Sitting there, in the sand against the warm stone wall, Barriss allowed herself her first real look around. Memories of the past battle flooded back as she took in the dusty, gruesome scene. Heaps of mechanic wreckage were strewn about, mingled with the scarred remains of her jedi companions and other organic soldiers. The stench of charred metal and violent death reached her now for the first time - or rather she just now noticed it.

In a still dazed manner, Barriss reached out through the force, trying to find any other stir of life within the abandoned arena - _there are others like me here, the droids could not have taken us all_. She probed all corners of the arena, searched almost desperately for any other vital sign of life, called for someone to answer her. But there was no one left in the arena to answer.

_Master? Master, please answer me. _The thought that Master Lumenera had been among the casualties hit her almost as hard as the light had hit her eyes upon first opening them. No. No, Master Lumenera was here, somewhere. Her and Master Windu, Master Yoda, Master Obi-Wan; these were people that no one - especially battle droids- could not possibly even touch.

_Then where is everyone?_

A feeling of desperation came over the padawan very suddenly as she realized how very alone she was. Glancing over to where she had first fallen, Barriss saw her lightsaber, deactivated, its polished hilt gleaming in the bright afternoon light.

Or morning light? She knew it had been afternoon when the battle had started, how long had she laid there? How long were the days on Geonosis? Judging from the state of the arena, the battle had not ended very long ago - as this was an open air coliseum, the smoke would have dissipated had she been here longer.

No matter the answer, Barriss reached out with the force, this time to draw her lightsaber to her. It leapt obediently and sailed easily into her grasp. Activating it, she found, to her relief, that the weapon had not been damaged too badly.

_Thank the stars, though I don't think I could really use it right now..._

Barriss inhaled a deeply and let out a long, calming breath. She needed her wits about her now, if she was going to get out of here.

Get out. There was no one around, how would she get out?

_Better than the thousands of droids, or even a hundred Geonosians; no matter what Master Windu may say, I don't think I'm worth two of them right now much less a hundred. _

* * *

again, sorry, but thats a to be continued there...will finish, but as its 12:30 am, I don't think I can right now... 


End file.
